The energy management software company BuildingIQ has been awarded a $1.2-million grant from Commercialisation Australia, an initiative of the Australian federal government.

BuildingIQ plans to use the funds to expand its offerings, which focus on energy maangement in commercial buildings.

As recent heat waves have shown, power grids are struggling to cope with increasing energy demand. Much of this demand is from commercial buildings, which consume 20 percent of all power. In the current economy, commercial building operators are also struggling with growing energy costs.

BuildingIQ’s software is designed to reduce energy costs and peak power loads in commercial buildings. The company also offers building managers demand reduction incentive programs by automating DR events with minimal risk to tenant comfort.

The company claims its software has achieved up to 40 percent savings on heating, ventilation and air-conditioning loads and 30 percent peak load reductions in a wide variety of buildings in Australia and the US. BuildingIQ plans to use the funding from Commercialisation Australia to further develop and deliver its SaaS (software as a service)-based optimization technology.

“The future of energy management is proactive optimization – basically a more intelligent, more profitable way to manage energy in commercial buildings,” said Mike Zimmerman, CEO of BuildingIQ.

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